Clematis plant named ‘Evipo070’

ABSTRACT

A new  Clematis  plant with a compact growth habit, profuse, red-purple flowers, and continuous summer flowering. The variety successfully propagates from softwood cuttings and is suitable for cultivation commercial nursery culture. This new and distinct variety has shown to be uniform and stable in the resulting generations from asexual propagation from vegetative cuttings.

Botanical classification: Genus: Clematis. Species: viticella.

Variety denomination: ‘Evipo070’.

SUMMARY OF THE CLAIMED PLANT

The present invention constitutes a new and distinct variety of Clematis plant which originated from a controlled crossing between the female seed parent, an un-named seedling, and the male pollen parent, an un-named seedling. Both of the parent varieties are non-patented.

The two parents were crossed during the summer of 2000 and the resulting seeds were planted the following winter in a controlled environment in Guernsey, Channel Islands. The new variety named ‘Evipo070’ originated as a single seedling from the stated cross.

The new clematis plant may be distinguished from its female seed parent and male pollen parent by the following characteristics. The male pollen parent has larger flowers and fewer flower buds than the claimed plant. The seed parent is more compact than the claimed plant.

The objective of the hybridization of this clematis plant was to create a new and distinct variety for nursery culture with unique qualities such as:

-   -   1. Uniform and abundant red-purple flowers;     -   2. Vigorous and compact growth, making the variety suitable for         container culture;     -   3. Good flowering characteristics without vernalization; and     -   4. Improved disease resistance.

This combination of qualities was lacking in clematis plants that were in commercial cultivation and the qualities have been substantially achieved in the new variety.

‘Evipo070’ was selected by Mogens N. Olesen and Raymond J. Evison in their clematis development program in the Channel Islands, United Kingdom in 2001. Asexual reproduction of ‘Evipo070’ by means of vegetative cuttings and traditional layering was first performed by Mogens N. Olesen and Raymond J. Evison in the nursery during the summer of 2001. This initial and subsequent asexual propagations have demonstrated that the characteristics of ‘Evipo070’ are true to type and are transmitted from one generation to the next.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

The accompanying color illustration shows as true as is reasonably possible to obtain in color photographs of this type the typical characteristics of the buds, flowers, leaves, and stems, of ‘Evipo070’. Specifically illustrated in the drawing are flowers at various stages of development, flower in parts, leaves, and stems.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIETY

The following is a detailed description of ‘Evipo070’, as observed in its growth throughout the flowering period in open air cultivation in Yamhill County Oreg. Observed plants were cultivated for a period of 18 months in 2 liter containers. Certain phenotypical characteristics of the variety may vary under different environmental, cultural, agronomic, seasonal, and climatic conditions. Color references are made using The Royal Horticultural Society (London, England) Colour Chart, 2001, except where common terms of color are used.

For a comparison, several physical characteristics of the clematis variety ‘Evipo018’ described and illustrated in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 16,267 issued Feb. 21, 2006 are compared to ‘Evipo070’ in Chart 1.

CHART 1 ‘Evipo070’ ‘Evipo018’ Flower diameter 130 mm 100 to 120 mm General tonality of Red-Purple Group 61A Red-Purple Group flower color with intonations of Red- 71A Purple Group 61B. Tepal count 6 6

FLOWER AND FLOWER BUD

-   Blooming habit: Continuous. The natural flowering period is     generally from May to September. -   Flower bud:     -   -   Size.—Normally 26 mm in length. Bud diameter is 9 mm.         -   Bud form.—Long, campanulate.         -   Bud color.—Greyed-Orange Group 177A & Yellow-Green Group             145A. -   Peduncle:     -   -   Surface texture.—Smooth.         -   Length.—On average 80 mm.         -   Width.—2 mm.         -   Color.—Greyed-Purple Group 187A & Yellow-Green Group 145A.         -   Strength.—Moderately strong. -   Receptacle:     -   -   Surface texture.—Smooth.         -   Shape.—Funnel.         -   Size.—4 mm (h)×3 mm (w).         -   Color.—Yellow-Green Group 145A. -   Flower arrangement:     -   -   Location on vine.—New growth and overlapping.         -   Borne.—Singly.         -   Aspect.—Flowers are oriented upwards. -   Flower bloom:     -   -   Size.—On average, flowers are 130 mm in diameter and 25 mm             in depth.         -   Profile.—Open flowers are flat.         -   Fragrance.—None.         -   Lasting quality.—Flowers normally remain 6 days on the             plant. -   Tepals:     -   -   Tepal color.—Upon opening, the upper surface is Red-Purple             Group 61A with intonations of Red-Purple Group 61B. The             lower surface is Greyed-Purple Group 186C with intonations             of Greyed-Purple Group 187A in a central bar. After opening,             the upper surface is Red-Purple Group 61A with intonations             of Red-Purple Group 61B. The lower surface is Purple Group             75A with a central bar Greyed-Purple Group 187A.         -   Quantity.—Normally 6 tepals.         -   Size.—65 mm in length by 35 mm wide.         -   Shape.—Individual tepal shape elliptic. The tepal apex is             mucronate. The tepal base is acute.         -   Apex recurvature.—Slight.         -   Tepal cross section.—Reflexed slightly.         -   Margins.—Entire. Weak undulations of margin observed.         -   Persistence.—Tepals drop off cleanly. -   Reproductive organs:     -   -   Arrangement.—Open.         -   Pollen.—None observed.         -   Anthers.—Size: 6 mm in length. Color: Yellow-Green Group             150D. Quantity: On average, 40.         -   Filaments.—Color: Red-Purple Group 71A at base, becoming             Green-White Group 157B at the middle and upper portion.             Length: 6 mm.         -   Pistils.—Quantity: On average, 20.         -   Stigmas.—Inferior in location relative to the length of the             filaments and the height of the anthers.         -   Styles.—Color: Green-White Group 157A. Length: 9 mm. -   Seed head characteristics: None observed.

PLANT

-   Plant form: Climbing. -   Plant growth: Moderate and compact. -   Size: Seasons growth attains 1 meters in height. Average spread is     50 cm. -   Stems:     -   -   Color.—Juvenile stems are Yellow-Green Group 146B. Mature             stems are Greyed-Orange Group 175A.         -   Internodes.—On average, 85 cm between nodes.         -   Length.—Normally 30 cm from the base of the plant to the             flowering portion of the stem.         -   Diameter.—Normally 3 mm.         -   Texture.—Mature stems are ribbed. -   Plant foliage:     -   -   Leaf characteristics.—Deciduous.         -   Arrangement.—5 leaflet pinnate, opposite.         -   Leaf size.—Compound leaves are normally 160 mm (l)×120 mm             (w). Leaflets are normally 45 mm (l)×2 mm (w).         -   Abundance.—On average 4 leaves per 10 cm of stem.         -   Leaf color.—Juvenile upper Yellow-Green Group 144A with             Greyed-Orange Group 147A at margins. Juvenile lower             Yellow-Green Group 144A. Mature upper Yellow-Green Group             146A. Mature lower Yellow-Green Group 146B.         -   Stipules.—Absent.         -   Petioles.—Size: Normally 50 mm in length by 1 mm diameter.             Texture: Smooth. Color: Greyed-Purple Group 183A.         -   Petiolule.—Size: 12 mm long and 1 mm diameter. Texture:             Smooth. Color: Greyed-Purple Group 183A.         -   Leaflet shape.—Generally aristate. The base is rounded. The             apex is acute.         -   Margin.—Entire.         -   Surface.—The upper side is smooth. The lower side is smooth.         -   Thickness.—Moderate.         -   Glossiness.—Somewhat glossy. -   Disease resistance: Subject to any disease that normally attacks the     species. However the variety is more tolerant to clematis wilt,     Phoma clematidina, than some clematis. -   Cold hardiness: The variety is tolerant to USDA Hardiness Zone 6. -   Heat tolerance: The variety has been found to be suitable for     climate conditions found in the American Horticulture Society heat     zone 7. 

We claim:
 1. A new and distinct variety of clematis plant named ‘Evipo070’, substantially as described and illustrated, due to its abundant red-purple flowers with good keepability, attractive long lasting foliage and compact growth, year round flowering under glasshouse conditions, suitability for production from softwood cuttings in pots, durable flowers and foliage which make the variety suitable for distribution in the floral industry. 